More than 600 elementary students from Hamilton Southeastern Schools will start school year in a new building featuring a STEM lab, collaboration spaces and outdoor courtyards.
Members of the public, in addition to administration and other district employees, recently got a chance to tour Deer Creek Elementary School that will serve kindergarten through fourth-grade students for the 2022-23 school year. The two-story building at 12698 E. 156th St. in Noblesville has more than 102,000 square feet of learning space.
Deer Creek Elementary was built on concepts from the design of Southeastern Elementary School, according to the district, which recently held a ribbon cutting event marking the completion of the building that drew more than 75 people.
“The benefits to student learning were observed in the design of Southeastern and we wanted to continue the tradition of creating inquiry-based environments,” said Yvonne Stokes, superintendent for Hamilton Southeastern Schools.
Deer Creek Elementary, located in Wayne Township, will replace Durbin Elementary School as a K-4 building. Students who were previously assigned to Durbin will now attend Deer Creek, along with other students living in the surrounding area.
The $35 million building was constructed by the Hagerman Group, a contractor in Fishers, and was designed by Indianapolis-based CSO Architects. District officials said the building, which was funded through the sale of bonds, was planned to absorb student growth on the district’s northeast side.
Among the features of the new building include a STEM lab, three collaboration spaces, in addition to outdoor courtyards, patios and rooftop terraces that officials say will help bring the outdoors in and provide additional opportunity to extend the classroom outside.
Linda Ededuwa, principal at Deer Creek Elementary, said students’ lives will be changed inside the building and that friendships will be made. Kindergarten and first grade students will be taught on the first floor of the building, while students in the remaining grades will be on the second floor of the building.
Ededuwa said that she is excited to see the reaction of students once they walk inside for the first time. The school will open its doors to students Aug. 3.
Ededuwa also pointed out what she enjoys the most about the new building with a smile.
“Just the uniqueness of the building, the beauty, it’s exciting,” Ededuwa said.
